About the conference: The International cross-disciplinary conference on Qualitative Research for Policy Making 2010 (QRPM2010) was held on the 14 & 15 January 2010 in Malta. This conference was organised by the Merlien Institute and was endorsed by the International Journal of Data Analysis Techniques and Strategies (IJDATS). This highly interactive, cross-disciplinary conference has brought together policy researchers and practitioners to discuss best practices on using qualitative research for policy making.

Photos from the QRPM2010 conference in Malta:

Programme highlights: This conference provided excellent opportunities for participants to interact with international experts on how to use qualitative research for underpinning policy decisions. Content highlights included:
>Engaging in effective dialogues: how can researchers, policymakers and practitioners talk better to each other?
>Maximising the opportunities for qualitative research to enter into policy environments
>Avoiding pitfalls in communicating qualitative research to stakeholders: learning from past rejections
>Applying the concept of 'generalisation' while delivering qualitative research results for policy making
>Using systematic reviews and syntheses of qualitative research to inform policy making
>Developing strategies to convince stakeholders of the validity of qualitative research findings
>Convincing decision makers to take account of and use of qualitative evidence to underpin policy decisions
>Anticipating 'hot issues' for policy makers to be in a position to report quickly to new developments
>Ensuring successful inter-professional collaboration when dealing with highly complex research projects
>Discussing best practices on how to write and report qualitative research findings to stakeholders and clients

Attendees from this conference include:
Giuseppe A. Veltri - Scientific Fellow, JRC European Commission (EU)
Natasha Muscat, Director General Strategy & Sustainability - Ministry of Social Policy (MT)
Timothy Nelson - Lecturer in Social Policy, Harvard Kennedy School, Harvard University (US)
David Nicolas - Senior Associate Scientist, The Hospital for Sick Children (Canada)
Sarah Morton, Director - Centre for Research on Families and Relationships (UK)
Kate Westmacott, Research Manager - Qualifications and Curriculum Development Agency (UK)
Peter Goff, Consultant Researcher - Qualifications and Curriculum Development Agency (UK)
Tom May, Researcher - Qualifications and Curriculum Development Agency (UK)
Anke van der Kwaak - Senior Advisor, Royal Tropical Institute (The Netherlands)
Jennifer Fluekiger, Information & Publications Officer - University of Edinburgh (UK)
Ruth Garside, Senior Research Fellow - Peninsula Medical School (UK)
Mark Pearson, Research Fellow - Peninsula Medical School (UK)
Will Thomas, Senior Research Associate - University Campus Suffolk (UK) 
Anne-Marie Doherty, PhD Canadidate - Queen's University of Belfast (UK)
Isabel Cuervo, PhD Candidate - City University of New York (US)
Michael G. Wilson - PhD Candidate, McMaster University (Canada)
Ahmet Suerdam - Professor in Business Administration, Istanbul Bilgi University (Turkey)
Eric Lai - Health Policy Analyst, Department of Health and Human Services (US)
Sarah Neal - Senior Lecturer, Faculty of Social Science, Open University (UK)
Jenny Owen - Director of Learning and Teaching, University of Sheffield (UK)
John A. Schembri - Department of Geography, The Mediterranean Institute (Malta)
Sally Theobald - Senior Lecturer in Social Science and International Health, University of Liverpool (UK)
Sabine Andresen - Professor, Bielefeld Center for Education and Capability Research (Germany)
Robert Miller - Professor of Sociology, Queen's University of Belfast (UK)
Gerald Galway - Professor of Education, Memorial University (Canada)
Carolyn Idusso - Master Student & Ford Fellow, University of Birmingham (UK)
Melanie Demarco - PhD Student, City University London (UK)
Bernadine Satariano - Teacher & Student, University of Malta (MT)
Ina Lempereur - PhD Candidate, K.U. Leuven (Belgium)
Roland Simon - Head of Unit Interventions, Law & Policies, EMCDDA (PT)
Andrea Cecchin - PhD Candidate, Ca'Foscari University Venice (IT)
Neil de Reybekill - Chief Executive - Life Research (UK).
Kavita Abraham - LSE Fellow, Methodology Institute, London School of Economics (UK) - Panellist